It's the Brian Larry Show on WNYC. Good morning again, everyone. So one obvious feature of American

politics right now is the high levels of polarization, right? That word has certainly got a lot of

meanings, though, that go beyond having differences on key issues. And so even in this election,

you know, when people are rightly working for victory in their parties' races, polarization is a topic

unto itself. Biden and Trump have both been known to call for unity,

though they tend to use the word differently. The Carnegie Corporation of New York has begun

stepping into this fray. Their current president, Dame Louise Richardson, former president of Oxford

University, has committed to making a fight against polarization their top priority for

the foreseeable future. And we'll talk to her now about that. Dame Louise, thanks for joining us.

Welcome to WNYC. And it's a pleasure to be here. First, I believe I addressed you in the proper way,

Dame Louise, but for our listeners thinking,

what does that mean? Could you explain that title to our listeners who might be unfamiliar?

Well, a dame is the female equivalent of a knight, so a man would be awarded a knighthood

and called Sir by the British monarch, and a woman is named a dame, which is the equivalent.

So it is an award given by the British monarchy in recognition of particular achievements usually.

In my case, it was because of the work my colleagues and I did,

getting more children into elite universities like Oxford

and St. Andrews, the two I led, as well as for my work and helping to develop the Oxford

AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID. Fabulous. And for those unfamiliar with the Carnegie Corporation

of New York, what kind of not-for-profit

organization is it?

What has it done in the past?

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